Chapter 87 The Cost of a Lie

Chapter 87 The Cost of a Lie
Bianca hummed happily to her favorite song as she sat on the bed at the Damiano mansion, folding a silk dress and placing it into an open suitcase on the bed.
"Switzerland," she whispered to the empty room. "Fresh air. No more hiding. No more lies," she thought, her heart racing in excitement.
She touched her stomach and felt the slight swell of her baby under her fingers. She imagined Lorenzo holding her hand as they walked through a park far away from here.
Suddenly, there was a loud bang from downstairs, like the sound of a door being kicked open. Then came the shouting. Bianca froze. The dress slipped from her fingers and landed on the floor. She ran to the door and pulled it open just an inch.
Downstairs, the house was in chaos as servants ran through the halls, their faces pale with fear.
"They caught him!" a maid cried out as she ran past. Another shouted. "Lorenzo is gone! They have evidence! The police are everywhere!"
Bianca felt her blood turn to ice. Her heart pounded fast in her chest. "No," she breathed. "It can't be."
She didn't wait to hear more. She knew what this meant. If they had Lorenzo, they were coming for her next. She ran to her closet, tore a hole in the back of the lining, and pulled out a thick envelope. It was the emergency cash Lorenzo had given her, one hundred thousand dollars in crisp bills. She grabbed her international passport from the safe and shoved everything into a small bag.
She slipped through the servant’s entrance and ran to the garage, got into her car, and drove out of the estate, her tires screeching on the gravel. She didn't look back at the house. She just drove.
Bianca drove for four hours. She didn't stop until she was in a small, dusty town far outside the city. The sun was going down, so she found a cheap motel, the neon sign buzzing and flickering.

"I need a room," she told the man at the front desk. She used a fake name and handed him two hundred dollars in cash.
"Room six," he said, handing her a key, not even looking up.
She walked into the room, wrinkling her nose at the irritating smell of cigarettes and cheap cleaner as she stared at the peeling yellow wallpaper. She sat on the edge of the bed, thinking about her life.
"What am I going to do?" she whispered, her voice sounding hollow. "Lorenzo is gone."
She was alone, a fugitive, and a traitor. Every news station would have her face on the screen by morning. The Damianos would never stop looking for her. And Lorenzo... Lorenzo would likely face a death sentence.
She looked down at her stomach, a wave of despair washing over her.
"I can't do this," she sobbed. "I can't bring a baby into this."
She imagined the child growing up on the run. A child who would be hated the moment anyone found out who their parents were. A child with no father and a mother who was now better dead.
"I'm sorry," she cried, her body shaking with heavy sobs. "I'm so sorry."
She picked up her phone with trembling hands as she searched for help in the area. She needed someone who didn't ask questions and found a clinic listed on the web. It was nearby, unofficial. It was perfect for what she wanted to do.
When she got there, the clinic wasn’t how she thought it would look. It was located in the back of an old warehouse. The man who met her didn't look like a doctor. His eyes were cold and unsmiling.
"Cash only," he demanded.
Bianca handed over a stack of bills. "Just do it now."
The room was freezing. She lay down on a metal table that was stained with rust and things she didn't want to name. When the procedure began, the pain was unlike anything Bianca had ever felt. 
"Something is wrong," she gasped, her face constricted. "Stop. It hurts too much."
The man panicked. "Stay still! I have to finish!"
Then the blood came. It didn't stop. It poured out of her, soaking the table and the floor. The man’s hands began to shake. He tried to grab gauze, but he didn't have enough. He didn't have a way to stop the hemorrhaging.
"I... I can't breathe," Bianca whispered.
The light in the room began to dim as her vision blurred. She thought of Lorenzo, of the way he looked at her when they were alone. She thought of Isabella and felt a sudden, sharp regret. She had spent her whole life wanting what Isabella had. She had destroyed everything to get it. And now, she had nothing.
"Luca," she murmured as she took her last breath.

At the hospital, the machines were the only things making noise as Salvatore lay quietly in the bed, his face almost the same color as the white sheets.
Luca and Isabella sat in the hallway, waiting, their eyes on the door. Finally, the doctor stepped out to talk to them.
"He is stable for now," the doctor said. "But I have to be honest with you both."
Luca stood up. "Tell us."
"The stress... the internal damage... it has made the cancer move much faster. His body is giving up." The doctor looked down. "He has a week. Maybe less. We can keep him comfortable, but there is nothing left to do."
Luca felt like he had been punched. "Cancer? What cancer?"
“Oh, my God!” Isabella whispered, her eyes teary.
"Lung cancer," the doctor said softly. "He has been fighting it for months."
Luca and Isabella walked into the room just as Salvatore’s eyes opened. 
"Papa?" Isabella whispered, taking his hand.
"Sit down," Salvatore rasped. "I have to tell you the truth. I should have told you both a long time ago."
He told them everything about the diagnosis, the pain he had hidden, and the main reason why he pushed for the marriage.
"I thought if I gave you a legacy, I could die in peace," he whispered; his voice broke. "I was so stubborn. I trusted the wrong people. I forced you both into a nightmare because I was afraid of leaving you with nothing."
He looked at them through tears. "I nearly destroyed you. Can you ever forgive me for being so blind?"
Isabella leaned over and kissed his forehead; her tears fell down his cheek. "We forgive you, Papa. We understand now. You did it because you loved us."
Luca grabbed his father’s other hand. "We are together, Father. Lorenzo is gone, and the family is safe now. That’s all that matters."
Salvatore closed his eyes as tears rolled down his face. "I love you," he whispered. "More than life itself."
The three of them held each other in the quiet room as the heart monitor beeped steadily. They were a family again, but they all knew the clock was ticking. Their time was almost up.